Valve Software's Steam Dev Days event was billed as a game industry-only, off-the-record event -- no journalists allowed.

Fortunately, Valve has apparently been lax about the tweeting policy at the two-day Seattle event, as some of the 1,200 game developers in attendance have been quite chatty on social media, giving us a peek at what's happening on-site.

There wasn't any earth-shattering news at the event, though developers' excitement has been infectious throughout the course of the day. For most, this is the first time that they've been able to encounter Steam Machines, and handle Valve's unique Steam Controller.

Watching the event unravel on social media, and the enthusiasm of the game creators at the event, makes Valve's push for PC and Linux in the living room a bit more tangible. Then Steam Dev Days meetup hasn't just been about knowledge sharing and networking -- this is Valve acknowledging that it needs game developers on its side if it wants to make a real impact in the living room and beyond. And Valve appears ready to reinforce its relationship with game creators.